Gin Joints, Neptune Grand and a Penthouse
by irmak
Summary: Goes AU after One Angry Veronica. Duncan has Lilly's custody and he's not exactly a saint. Angsty confrontations.


**Gin Joints, Neptune Grand And A Penthouse**

"And of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine."

Veronica didn't need to turn around to know who the owner of that voice was. She could even tell that a smirk came with that comment.

"Hey, Humphrey! Ah, this unboostable ego of yours! Here I am, trying to get to my boyfriend's room, and inevitably, I ran into you. No, please tell me that this isn't just a coincidence..." She leaned towards him, batting her eyelashes repeatedly for a few times. "That we're meant to be."

Logan didn't answered for a moment, which almost made Veronica want to back up. Maybe the leaning part was a bit forward, even for her. She breathed deeply because she desperately needed to do _something_. Having his eyes fixed on hers were just mixing things up. But all she could smell was his familiar cologne, which didn't help the situation at all. It wasn't like her boyfriend didn't smell good, no sir, although lately all she smelled was baby powder and puke, but that was okay. Well, on some level.

"Whatever, Ilsa." Logan dropped his eyes before he continued. "I don't think he was expecting you, though. Last time I checked he was taking a nap with, uh, his daughter."

It wasn't the father-daughter time what actually bothered Veronica, it was the eye drop she had just witnessed. Logan Fucking Echolls had just dropped his eyes as if he cared. Now that was a first. "Oh. I see."

"Care to drink something? Martini?" He lowered his voice, impersonating Sean Connery so successfully that her jaw dropped. "Shaken, not stirred?"

Veronica looked at Logan for a while before she said something. What was with the sudden change of heart? He was talking to Veronica about an issue which he could have used to hurt her, yet he was backing off. She knew a change of heart required one but that was what Logan was missing in the first place. Nevertheless, she enjoyed watching him acting as if he actually gave a damn, so she decided to play along as well.

"Give me a whiskey, ginger ale on the side. And don't be stingy, baby." 

He blurted out a giggle, nodding for a few times. "Of course. Greta Garbo. What was I thinking?"

"Obviously, nothing much. You aren't too bright. I like that in a man." 

She knew he was loving the challenge, something new and harder everyday. Sometimes all she wanted to do was to slap him and yell that he didn't have to hurt someone to get attention, that he should stop fucking fighting with everyone. But Veronica knew Logan better than this. He was thinking it was his wit that kept him going, hell, he was probably right. Wasn't that what protected Veronica from him in the first place?

"So?"

His hands were pointing at his drink and when Veronica decided to say something she was pretty shocked by the softness of her voice, compared to the "I am the bitch" voice she had used when she walked in. "Nah. I'm good. I should probably-"

"Go visit your boyfriend and _Lilly_." The emphasizing made so much sense.

"No. I don't wanna disturb them. I'll go visit Wallace or something." Veronica had her poker face on and tried to sound as if her not visiting Duncan and Lilly was the most casual thing ever. She knew she was failing miserably.

"Hey, Veronica. If you wanna focus on something other than, you know, _this_, there is always me not being the murderer of Felix." Veronica later on thought that maybe he was really just trying to make a small-talk, but that unfortunately couldn't change the response she had given. She never wondered how on earth he managed to piss her off that easily, though. Veronica never liked to think about what she cannot solve.

"There you go. I knew you couldn't just be nice for once, without asking for a favor. What was I thinking, _anyway_?" Her eyes were narrowed with abhorrence.

Fire burned up in Logan's eyes. "I've heard that you aren't into nice guys, _Ronnie_. Don't you like it when things are rough? Or maybe I should been have the one to impregnated Meg. Would that turn you on?"

Vicious was the word Veronica thought of when she heard Logan talking. She smiled. Logan must have thought that she forced herself to, but he was wrong. She smiled because he was easier to handle when vicious. Nice Logan reminded her of... her past. And all she wanted was to move fucking forward.

" I seriously wouldn't want your right hand to dump you, Logan. Also, Meg would _never_ let you around her."

"Nice. And you don't know that, Mars. Even good girls sometimes need a real ride." The damn smirk appeared on Logan's mouth again and Veronica wondered if it were ever gone.

"Seriously, Logan. You paying Dick's mommy totally proves you right. Women just _dig_ Logan Echolls, don't they? How pathetically sweet."

"Seriously, _Veronica_. Do you enjoy playing house with DK?"

Veronica opened her mouth to answer but she was interrupted by her cell phone's ring. She checked the caller-ID right after giving Logan a 'whatever' look, it was Wallace. Thank God.

"What's up Wallace?" She was speaking to the phone but her eyes were fixed on Logan's. It was intense, least to say. Wallace was babbling into her ear, but all she could do was to glance Logan with narrowed eyes, hoping that he would see the hatred in them. "Um, yeah, fine. I'll be there."

She hung up the phone, before she could hear Wallace talking, "Damn, girl! Where's your mind at? Oh. You're _not _making out with Duncan _right now_, right? Hello? Vee?" He paused for a moment. "Ew."

They stared at each other like gunman did just before a duel. Veronica was the one who broke the silence and the stare, not because he was getting to her, since there was _no way_ he could manage that, but because she wanted to leave that bar, that hotel, Logan, Duncan, all of the drama she's been going through. "Nice chatting with you, Logan. Glad to see that you're the same _lovely_ person you were a few days before. I couldn't handle the change."

Logan didn't answer but continued looking at Veronica for a little while, slowly shaking his head. She could almost see the wheels turning in his head, but at the end all he said was a frustrated "Whatever." 

Veronica left the hotel bar and didn't looked back even for a second, but if she had turned, she would have seen Logan almost calling out her name, for God knows what reason.

---

"So how was Duncan?" Wallace asked oh-so-ordinarily. Veronica couldn't help but smile.

"I didn't see him. He was napping with Lilly, apparently."

Wallace cocked his eyebrow with a typical aww-if-I-weren't-a-man-I-would-hug-you look in his eyes. Not exactly what she needed at the moment so tears filled Veronica's eyes.

Wallace panicked. "Uh, Vee, sorry. I didn't, I, no, uh. Sorry."

"No, Wallace, it's just..."

"It's okay. You don't have to say anything." Wallace nodded a few times, saying "Don't I know it!" without actual words. Seriously, Fennell was having such a gay day.

"Anyway." Veronica shook her head as if she could shake away her sadness. "I ran into Logan and as you can guess, he was pretty excited to see the gorgeous sight of me."

"Seriously, girl, now that I _own_ the basketball team, don't you want me to tell some of the guys to kick his sorry little ass?" He emphasized his interest by punching his palm with a fist.

"Aww, Batman, you have your own Robins now! How very exciting of you! But tell me something." Veronica pouted. "They ain't prettier than me, right?"

"No way in hell. So you don't want me to..." Wallace pointed out his obvious proposition.

"Naaah, I can handle him. Besides, I own his ass. He needs my help to prove his innocence."

"Fine. You know I just want your happiness, right? And I'm here no matter what you _decide_?"

Veronica tilted her head slightly before she said something. "My very own knight in shiny armor! And he's got the groove."

"Hey! Don't mock me and my very fine style. So, wanna grab a pizza?"

"Can't. Duncan called on my way here. We'll meet for dinner."

"I see." Veronica noticed how Wallace wanted to say more but he was just forcing himself to keep his goddamn mouth shut. He finally gave up. "That's not good, Veronica. Look at you. You're just circling around the subject. You're to terrified to face it and it's killing you."

"What do you want me to say, Wallace?" Veronica sounded so tired, and she truly was.

"I want you to say that you'll do something about Duncan, Vee! You're not happy, why are you forcing it?"

"I promised Meg I'd take care of Lilly!" Veronica noticed that she was practically screaming, but that didn't bother her, she needed some release in one way or another.

"Lilly is fine, Veronica. She's no longer in danger. She's with her father and you're done. You don't belong there, you don't wanna belong there, so what the hell are you doing?"

"Duncan has _Meg's _baby, Wallace! How am I suppose to compete with _that_?"

"If you think you have to compete with anything, this is so not working, Vee. I'm just saying."

---

Although Veronica had decided not to do anything, the view from where she stood didn't look very promising. She had thought that she should be there for Duncan, she couldn't dump and leave him all alone just because she had issues with the dead mother of his child, and that _maybe_ she hadn't actually stopped loving him. She had waited to see him, sure that his reassuring eyes would have calmed her down, helped to clear her mind. While it wasn't exactly how she hoped for as he acted like nothing was wrong, _again_, Veronica played along, nevertheless. She just needed a clean slate, a clear mind.

But, finding Kendall getting out of Duncan's shower instead of Logan's during a surprise visit didn't actually cleared things up.

When Kendall noticed Veronica, all she said was an 'oops' in an unconvincing manner, because Veronica knew she actually didn't care. Good for her.

What was even worse was watching Duncan, in slow motion, coming out off the same bathroom, half naked. He stepped out, opened his mouth to say something to Kendall ('how much' would be her guess) but nothing came out as his jaw rested open when he saw his dear girlfriend.

Veronica gave him the most bitter smile he had ever come across, raised her arms and opened her hands wide as if she was in a magic show.

"Taa daa! And here's the tiny blond you must have thought had vanished. If you liked this trick, please stand by for the upcoming one. How to-" Veronica turned backed to look at Kendall who was too busy with fixing her hair. "-cut a skank into two."

Kendall cocked an eyebrow at Veronica's gaze. "Um, _bitch please_?"

Veronica blurted out a bitter chuckle. "Geez. How old you think you are? Seriously?"

Kendall shook her head a couple of times before heading out the door. "Duncan, call me."

"Oh, please, I won't mind, you should stay. Since Logan will be back soon, why bother leaving, at all? I wouldn't want you to get tired. You should-" she swung a fist in the air "-keep up with the expectations.

Kendall rolled her eyes. "_Whatever_."

After Kendall's departure, Veronica fixed her eyes on Duncan, who was looking at everywhere but her.

"You know, the funny thing is, I don't even care about your explanation." Veronica spat out the words with disgust.

"You haven't touched me since Lilly was born, Veronica." Duncan stated as a matter-of-factly.

She hadn't seen that coming, getting blamed for his own fucking mistakes. "Oh, _fuck that_, Duncan! I had my issues, too, you know. The world does not revolve around you."

"Like what?" Duncan asked without any shame or regrets. It was almost like Veronica was the one caught cheating.

"Like what? _Like what_? Um, let me think, there is this bus crash that was fucking meant for me. And there's also this daughter of my boyfriend from his ex-comatose now dead ex-girlfriend who happen to be the sweetest person ever which doesn't help the situation at all since I have no one to blame but my own selfishness."

"You had your issues, and I had mine."

"And did Kendall just kiss it and make the pain go away?"

"What can I say, Veronica?"

"AN APOLOGY WOULD BE FINE, YOU BASTARD." And yelling never felt so good.

"I'm sorry." Veronica knew Duncan could stay calm under almost any circumstances, but, she was more that shocked watching him answering her in a colder manner than she had ever witnessed. Now _that_ wasn't what she really expected.

"Well, yeah, I'm too, for trying."

Veronica was crying when she ran out and got in the elevator. She never noticed Logan at the lobby while she were leaving the Neptune Grand, but if she had looked back, she would have seen him getting up all worried, his hands balled into fists, quickly heading upstairs.

If only she had looked. So that she would know how the hell Duncan Kane got a black eye the day after his infidelity was proved.

"Apparently, I was damn right when I used to say nobody messes with The Marshmallow." Wallace enjoyed what he had seen.

"Aw, I'm offended. You think I'm responsible for that? An amputated leg? Eh, maybe. But this? Naaah."

"So, Jason Lee was spot-on."

"Yep. Start making your own damn list, Wallace."

Veronica Mars had suddenly started to believe in karma, too.

---

"Duncan is not here, Verronica." Logan was slurring a little, which was good because now she could make him talk, and bad because he could be so fucking persuasive when drunk. Hell, actually, when wasn't he?

"Don't you think I'm aware of that?" She stepped in without waiting for his invite.

"_Please_, come in." Logan haunted her.

"Let me see your hands." Veronica sounded so serious and she kinda hoped she looked like that, too. Because she never thought she would use that sentence before she had children of her own.

"What?"

"Let. Me. See. Your. Hands."

Logan had his smirk No:5 on his face, 'Funny, not in an amusing but certainly in an irritating way'

"I figurred that out when you said that the first time, Marrs."

"Well, I've been taught that alcohol kills brain cells, and it smells like you've drowned the rest of them if there were any left, hence I'm repeating it again. Your hands, please."

He raised his hands reluctantly and Veronica hated how her heart kinda skipped a beat when she held them. There was a bruise on his right one, saying 'hello, I punched someone.'

"Um, when did this happen?"

"Gee, let me think. It's not like I get into fights and/or attempting murders everyday. I must remember this!"

"Did you punch Duncan?"

Her question caught Logan off guard and the way he weighed his words just gave him away easily. She pushed him a little more. "And why the hell you did this for?"

"Now, how the hell you came up with something like this, Marrs?"

"See, Duncan was fine when I left him at four p.m. I talked to Mac at six and she told me how she would meet Beaver soon because Kendall was supposed to go _somewhere_ but she returned very quickly and was being a bitch about everything, so our beloved Beaver was bummed and needed his girl, like, soon. Finally, I knew Duncan couldn't leave his room since Celeste would bring Lilly back by six, at the latest. So I assumed, something must have happened within these two hours, and guess who had access to the crime scene?" Words had obviously failed Logan, probably with the help of the booze, so he just smiled. "And now that you don't deny anything or yell that you'd had enough with me blaming you for everything, I kinda take it as a yes."

"So, hypothetically speaking, what if I did? What's it to you, anyway?" Logan's look was challenging, just like every fucking move of his body. Seriously, that guy dared you with every piece of his body.

"Well, I just _had to_ know whether you knew anything about, you know, _them_ and that little sucker punch of yours proved you didn't. Although, I was a bit surprised with your apparent affection for Kendall, but, whatever helps you through the night."

"Okay." Logan moved towards her and stopped only a few inches away. Veronica didn't moved a bit which probably encouraged him even more so he raised his hand to touch her cheek. "See, this might be the alcohol speaking, but, just to clear things up. We both know I don't give a shit about Kendall, and we both know why the hell I hit Duncan and we _sure as hell_ both know that you're here not because you 'had to know' anything since I bet you figured everything out the minute you saw Duncan, but because you just had to hear me saying it, didn't you?"

Veronica tilted her head and and bit her bottom lip seductively. "Say _what_?"

"That I did it for you?"

"Well, it kinda works for me."

"Yeah. Well…" Logan pressed his lips on Veronica's very slowly, just short enough to make her remember what she had been missing. "It doesn't work for me."

She was taken aback when Logan stepped back folding his arms across his chest with narrowed eyes.

"Did you _really_ think that I would fuck you the day after you find out that the 'love of your life' was banging that slut playmate of mine?" He made quotation marks in the air with his fingers and Veronica thought he might have pulled this act just because he fucking loves his jazz hands.

"I didn't actually think… _anything_."

"Do you honestly think I'm _that _pathetic? That I'm still so fucking in love with you that I wouldn't pass a revenge fuck? Geez! Who the hell do you think you are, Veronica?"

"I… I'm sorry. I shouldn't have…" Veronica tried to pass Logan by and leave but he grabbed her arm so hard that she couldn't move. He took a deep breath before saying something, he obviously had hard time getting that sentence rounded up.

"And don't you _ever_ think that this is actually about _you_. _Don't you dare_." Logan hissed.

Veronica nodded a few times like she was waking up from a terrible dream as she slipped out of his hold without speaking.

They both knew Logan was lying.

As Veronica left, she didn't looked back. If she had, she would have seen Logan devastated, his head between his hands, with tears in his eyes.

If only she had looked back.


End file.
